Oh, 2003, what shall you be? Deeper meaning, biting humor

Let us now focus forward on 2003--with its promise, its potential, its clean-slate-let's-try-it-again freshness.

And let us admit from the get-go that the road ahead will have its share of post-winter potholes and summertime construction projects.

Where will we gather in 2003--assuming you weren't invited to the impending J. Lo-Ben Affleck nuptials? Which traditions will we hold dear, which will we toss out? What quandaries will we face?

How will we find balance amid the busyness at home, on the job, at the table, in the gym? When we Google, what buzzwords will pop from cyberspace?

Trend trackers such as Chicago-based Mintel sifted these predictions from its Global New Products Database: Vanilla will be the scent of the year, white tea the ingredient of the moment and long-lasting fragrances looming on the horizon.

At the supermarket, look for refrigerated gourmet cat and dog food as well as "low-carbohydrate" claims trumping "low-fat."

There is talk among fashionistas about corsets on women, beards on men and a fragrance from songbird Celine Dion. Expect a lot more crossover of high-performance fabrics--anti-sweat, anti-friction--from sports into everyday wear for everywoman and everyman.

And what about those qualities of life we hold dear? Q tracked down a string of experts and asked them what we could expect to encounter in the year ahead.

"I think Chinese medicine is going to take a bigger role augmenting the care we give in conventional medicine," Koffler said. So will alternative therapies for treating menopausal symptoms.

"Patients are coming to us in droves looking for ways to take care of that condition that doesn't put them at risk for anything else.

"I think we'll continue to see a lot of conversation about the impact of high-carbohydrate diets on diabetes and the fattening of America. "[And] I would like to see a little more energy put into the powerful healing effects of music."

Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise, San Diego:

"In the past, people were exercising because they wanted the hard-body look and to lose weight. But now, people are exercising because they are looking for ways to positively control stress and feel better about themselves from a psychological standpoint," Bryant said.

He points to Pilates as the fitness trend. "We're finding more and more individuals are looking for that type of exercise experience that focuses on the whole person," including tai chi and yoga.

"I think you're going to see a greater emphasis on fusion-type fitness activities, where you combine some of the mind-body approaches with the more traditional type exercises," he said, "a combination of a yoga type experience with a more traditional step class, for example. You also see some people who are combining yoga and tai chi. They refer to it as yo-chi."

Other trends: We'll be improving core muscle functions, focusing on the quality of movement, alignment and proper breathing. "You're going to see an increase in the number of sports-specific training type activities to enhance that person'sability to perform the activities of daily living as well as the recreational activities they enjoy."

Gregory Florez, CEO of Fitadvisor.com, a health and coaching service based in Salt Lake City

"Fitness is headed toward more specific outcomes that affect me as a whole person as opposed to just my physical self," Florez said. "We see a huge swing toward an improved quality of life.

"Better sleep, more energy [as well as] things like fewer headaches, less depression, the ability to think and concentrate for longer periods of time, more presence of mind and energy to do the things I want to do as well as be more productive in my job.

"Those things may sound diametrically opposed, but [almost] everybody we're working with has been downsized or is being asked to do more with less, has more on their plate at home and at work, and they're asking for and needing more energy, clearheadedness, plus the ability to unplug and relax."

But, he added, "Fitness needs to be a lot more executable, actionable and portable. . . . Where fitness is headed is integrating it into your current lifestyle versus tagging it on as another initiative, another ball to juggle."

Dr. James Gordon, former chair of the White House commission on complementary and alternative medicine policy and head of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, D.C.

"The challenge is whether we're going to truly see our kinship with other people around the world or whether we're going retreat into a more narrow and self-protected view of ourselves as Americans. To me, that is the major psychological or mind-body issue with profound implications for our health and well-being.